Need a family doctor? Six tips from physicians for finding one in Ontario

Amid an worsening shortage of family physicians in the province, here are ways you can still find a family doctor. 

Kevin Jiang, staff reporter

Updated June 17, 2025 at 10:04 a.m.

A doctor examines a patient with a stethoscope in her doctor’s office in Stuttgart, Germany, April 28, 2008. Family physicians share their best practices for finding a doctor in Ontario.Thomas Kienzle/The Canadian Press

Ontario is facing a family doctor crisis.

An ongoing and worsening shortage of family physicians has contributed to ballooning emergency rooms and poorer health outcomes for millions of Ontarians, experts say. It has even led hundreds of people to queue for hours in the cold just for the chance to secure a doctor.

“By the end of this year, 25 per cent of all Ontarians won’t have access to a regular family doctor,” Dr. Zainab Abdurrahman, president of the Ontario Medical Association (OMA), told the Star. That’s up from the roughly 15 per cent of residents — some 2.5 million people — without a doctor last July.

The factors behind the shortage are numerous, from a crushing administrative burden that can see doctors spend 19 hours a week on paperwork alone, to stagnant compensation that has fallen well behind inflation, Abdurrahman said.

“When you look at all these factors, it’s really difficult to imagine someone opening up a new practice in comprehensive family medicine. It’s just not viable as a plan to move forward right now,” she said.

Read more at the Toronto Star